Class 

Book 

Copyright^ 0 

COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



THE 

SHETEK PIONEERS 

AND THE 

INDIANS. 



BY 

H. J. HIBSCHMAN. 



COPYRIGHTED BY THE AUTHOR, 
1 90 1, 



THE LIBRARY OF 

CONGRESS, 
Two Copies Received 

MAY, 20 1902 

Copyright entry 

CCASS'C^XXc! No 

I %- ^ S" la 
COPY B. 





INTRODUCTION. 



At one of the last meetings of that noble organization 
of the defenders of the Union, one of the old veterans 
asked his comrades why it is that the Grand Army of 
the Republic is like a potato plant. After a number 
of answers had been given and a request made for the 
correct one, the originator of the joke slyly replied: 
"Because the best part of it is underground !" This 
produced some laughter, but laughter tinged with sad- 
ness ; for the thought expressed is but too true — that 
the ranks of the heroes are rapidly thinning, that soon 
there will be no G. A. R. 

It is the fact that, were the question changed and put 
"Why are the pioneers like a potato plant?" the an- 
swer would still be the same, that seems to be a legit- 
imate excuse for such a sketch as that which follows 
— the fact that those who left the comforts of an East- 
ern home to settle where their terrible experiences with 
solitude, privation, cold, and savages, won for us, their 
descendants, homes on the rich and freedom-nourishing 
prairie, have nearly all been gathered to the homes of 
their fathers. 

As there is no surer sign of a people's decline than 
a loss of interest in its own history, so is there no bet- 
ter sign of a lasting loyalty than an interest in the story 
of the pioneers who conquered the beasts and the sav- 
ages that homes might be founded in security. Judged 
by this test the people of Southwestern Minnesota pre- 
eminently will not be found wanting ; for the traditions 
of the days that are past are very dear to them, and 



many are the romances they have interwoven with the 
tragedies around the historic spots which are so abun- 
dant in the Minnesota Valley. 

To choose one of these spots and to give its history 
without addition or diminution is not as easy, owing 
to a lack of agreement in the different accounts, as one 
might suppose. But believing that a history of the 
Shetek troubles, though omitting some of the details, 
and, perhaps, not strictly accurate in others, would be 
better than the few scattered and conflicting accounts 
now to be found, the author has examined the accounts 
available and attempts to give a truthful narration of 
what he has learned, hoping that a better acquaintance 
with the story will lead to a greater interest in the places 
around which this historic atmosphere hangs, and a 
higher respect for the heroic sufferers whose sowing 
we are reaping. 

Most of the information here given was gathered from 
personal accounts of the survivors of the massacre and 
from a newspaper sketch published in 1887 and now 
in the possession of Mr. Xeil Currie, of Murray County, 
to whom the author's thanks are due for courtesies ex- 
tended during his search for Shetek history. 



CHAPTER L 



LAKE SHETEK. 

Lake Shetek is a beautiful body of water lying in 
Murray County, in the southwestern part of Minnesota. 
It is about six miles long and, at places, between two 
and three miles wide. Its eastern shore is deeply 
wooded and must, in the early days, have afforded a 
welcome shelter alike to the wild animals, the Indians, 
and the settlers. 

Here was located, about the middle of the nineteenth 
century, a French trading post, to which came for bar- 
ter the Indians of the Redwood River and other nearby 
regions. Undoubtedly they brought the furs for which 
the French traders were seeking ; but their main reason 
for coming was the knowledge that there they could get 
the fascinating, yet fatal, "fire-water. " Numerous were 
the carousals, the dances, and the brawls which took 
place within sight of the lake, and many a cry of the 
excited, wild buck must have echoed through the trees, 
across the water, and against the bluffs that now ring 
only with the lowing of the cattle, the bleating of the 
sheep, the hum of the modern farm implement, the 
whistle of the steam-launch, or the yell of the merry 
picnicker. 

By and by, as is the story of all these frontier settle- 
ments, white men with their families, roaming over the 
prairie in search of homes, were attracted by the tim- 
ber and the water, and dotted the border of the lake 
with the log cabins which speak so eloquently of civ- 
ilization's "voices crying in the wilderness." 



8 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



Having acted as carpenters, they turned from the 
woods to the neighboring prairie and became farmers. 
With their rudely constructed plows and the patient 
oxen brought from a distant home they upturned the 
rich soil and planted corn and vegetables to supplement 
the game and fish which formed their principal food. 
Of these there was a plentiful supply. On the prairie 
and in the timber were birds and wild animals waiting 
for the hunter's gun; and in the lake were delicious 
pickerel that jumped out of the water and seemed to ask 
the settler paddling over the water by what right he 
was invading their domain. 

By the spring of 1862 ten or eleven families, includ- 
ing about forty-five persons, were living in the Shetek 
region Life was somewhat lonesome, and the mem- 
bers of the little community became very dear to each 
other. 

Occasionally Indians came to the lake and stayed for 
awhile, hunting and fishing. Some of them had be- 
come well known to the settlers during several years' 
residence and were regarded as friends. A few of the 
whites had even learned their language and liked to talk 
with them. As some of the Indians had also learned 
a little English, it was a common occurrence for the 
Indians to visit the cabins and smoke with the settlers ; 
and these visits were not without pleasure to the set- 
tlers, who generally succeeded in gathering little items 
of news from their stoical guests. Sometimes, however, 
the results of entertaining the company were not all 
pleasant. Especially was this the case in the fall of 1861. 

The Indians arrived some time during the summer 
and erected their tepees on the lake shore. Too well 
entertained by the hunting, the fishing, and, perhaps, 
the rum. they waited too long before starting for the 
north ; and, when they finally were aroused to the point 
of going, a blizzard compelled them to remain. They 



AND THE INDIANS. 



9 



made several attempts afterwards to move across the 
prairie to their usual winter home, but the weather was 
too severe, and for months they remained at Shetek, 
living, to a considerable extent, upon the provisions 
kindly given them by the settlers. When at last the 
weather improved and they left the lake, the white peo- 
ple were short of supplies and were compelled to use 
careful economy to keep themselves in food until spring. 
As it was, it was found necessary, about the first of 
June, to send Mr. Hurd and Mr. Jones to the Missouri 
River for supplies. They intended to be gone a month, 
during which time a man by the name of Vought was 
to take care of Hurd's farm. 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



CHAPTER IL 



HURD'S HORSE AND DOG. 

The first of July came, but did not bring Hurd and 
Jones with provisions. Weeks passed without any word 
from the missing men, and by the first of August the 
anxietv of Mrs. Hurd and her friendly neighbors was 
so great that men were sent out in search of them. In 
vain they hunted, not a trace of the lost ones could be 
found. vSo on the nineteenth of August the searchers 
returned and recommended that word be sent to New 
Ulm for soldiers to take up the hunt. 

The next morning at daybreak, Mr. Meyers, living 
at the head of the lake, on stepping out of the door to 
get some water for his wife, who was sick, discovered a 
crowd of young Indians who had torn down his fence 
and were breaking down his corn. Mr. Meyers' anger 
became intense when he saw what they were doing, for 
the failure of Hurd and Jones to appear had strongly 
impressed upon all that these men were lost by reason 
of the need of provisions occasioned by feeding the In- 
dians the previous fall. Meyers, however, was not sorry 
that he had fed the Indians ; not one of the settlers 
was. But it made him angry to think that these same 
Indians, after bringing him to want by living on his 
stores, dared to come and destroy the crop upon which 
he was dependent for the coming winter. 

Running out to the fence he yelled, "Hey, there, you 
bloody rascals ! What do you mean by trampling down 



12 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



my corn ? Haven't I alway s treated you as my friends ? 
Get out of there, or, by heavens, I'll thrash you to 
within an inch of your miserable lives.'' 

When he spoke, the Indians turned, yelled, and rode 
off at full speed, waving their arms and mocking him. 
though not offering to molest him, because, as one of 
them said to the others, "he was a good white man." 

Mrs, Hurd. attending to her work, with a heavy 
heart, was milking a cow some distance from the house 
when the Indians arrived from Meyers" place. They 
were as orderly as young bucks ever are, when they rode 
up to Mrs. Hurd. She greeted them cordially and in- 
vited them to go to the house, where they would find 
Yought. Dismounting, they trooped to the cabin, 
where they were soon smoking and chatting with 
Yought. 

When Mrs. Hurd had finished her milking she started 
for the house with her pail. As she approached the 
ponies of the Indians, a dog ran out from them, and, 
joyfully barking, rushed upon her with the impetuosity 
peculiar to his kind when a long-lost friend is found. 
She immediately recognized her husband's dog and 
eagerly looked around, expecting Mr. Hurd to be near. 
But as her eyes roved through the surrounding trees 
and back again to the house, they fell upon the ponies 
of the Indians ; and her milk pail slipped from her hand, 
her hair turned to a lighter shade, and her heart almost 
stood still as she discovered among them the pony upon 
which her husband had left for the Missouri. At last 
she had found the horse and dog. But where was her 
husband? In an instant the imagination of the true 
wife pictured his death at the stake with the red demons 
yelling around him. while, amid the smoke, his soul 
arose to the skv. 



AND THE INDIANS. 



A moment before Mrs. Kurd's discovery the baby in 
the cabin had begun to cry, and Vought, taking it up,, 
had stepped outside and carried it around until it be- 
came quiet. He was turning towards the cabin door 
to enter when Mrs. Hurd saw one of the Indians take 
his gun and raise it to his shoulder. She tried to scream, 
but her tongue was paralyzed with fear. The Indian's 
eye glanced along the barrel ; there was a flash, a report, 
and Yought, with the child on his breast, fell upon his 
face, killed by the cowardly shot. 

Mrs. Hurd sprang to his side and reached for her 
baby; but just as she grasped it an Indian caught her 
by the shoulder and thrust her rudely aside, still, how- 
ever, grasping her child. Meanwhile, the other child, 
three years of age, had been awakened and now ran 
out of the house calling for its mother. One of the 
Indians grabbed the poor little thing and raised it high 
above his head as if to dash it to pieces, then — gave it 
to Mrs. Hurd. 

Other Indians now appeared from the woods, and, 
rushing into the house and barn, began to plunder and 
destroy everything in sight, while the small crowd sur- 
rounding Mrs. Hurd, who stood mutely watching with 
her fatherless, homeless children pressed to her breast, 
debated the question of her disposal. At length one 
of them stepped to her side, roughly took hold of her 
arm, turned her towards the open prairie, and pointing 
away from the settlement, said, with warning in his 
voice: "White squaw go to her mother." 

The sad-hearted woman clasped her children in her 
arms, and, thankful to escape with them, started on a 
sad journey over an unknown plain, without any hope 
of an answer to the "Whither?" that rang through her 
mind. 



CHAPTER IIL 



THE ALARM. 

At the lower, or south, end of the lake lived a family 
by the name of Everett, with whom Mrs. Everett's 
brother, Charles Hatch, made his home. On the morn- 
ing- of the Indian attack Hatch started early for Hurd's 
place to get a team of oxen. As the distance he had to 
go was about six miles, he took a horse and rode as far 
as the house of a German settler by the name of Koch, 
or, as his neighbors called him, Cook. As there was 
an almost impassible marsh between Cook's place and 
Hurd's, Hatch left his horse at Cook's cabin and waded 
across to Hurd's cabin. On his arrival there a horrible 
sight met his eyes. Vought was lying before the cabin 
in his own blood, and pieces of furniture were scattered 
all over the yard; there was no sign of Mrs. Hurd or 
the children, but on all sides were the footprints of the 
Indians. 

Startled by his discovery, Hatch started at full speed 
to return and warn the settlers. He reached the marsh 
and began to wade across to Cook's place ; but, looking 
to the east side, he saw the Indians stealthily moving 
along the bank. They were almost at the cabin, and 
Hatch's only hope was that he might steal past them 
and spread the alarm. 

When the Indians reached Cook's place they saw Mrs. 
Cook in the field keeping the birds off the corn with 
her husband's gun while he ate his breakfast. Finding 
how things were, they divided, part going into the fielcl 



AND THE INDIANS. 



15 



and part into the house. As the former approached 
Mrs. Cook, she greeted them pleasantly as usual, and 
began to converse with them. After awhile one of 
them asked to see her gun, and, having no suspicion 
of anything wrong, she placed it into his hands. Imme- 
diately he turned it on her and said, savagely, "White 
squaw go to her mother. Big Indians kill heap pale- 
face men ; kill all pale-face men." 

The ones who went to the house went in and smoked 
while Mr. Cook ate. Of course they pretended to be 
as friendly as ever. After awhile one of them asked 
for a drink, and, as there was no water in the house, 
Cook started for the spring to get some. Just as he 
reached the door the report of a gun rang out, and he 
fell dead on the threshold. 

Charles Hatch, at that moment gliding by the house, 
heard the shot and saw Cook fall. No time was to be 
lost, and he ran as fast as he could towards the next 
house, in which lived a family by the name of Eastlick. 

Mr. Eastlick and his friend, Mr. Rhodes, had just sat 
down to breakfast, when little Merton came running into 
the cabin and called to his mother, "Oh, mamma, Char- 
ley Hatch is coming as fast as he can run." 

Thinking that some member of Everett's family might 
be hurt Mrs. Eastlick hastened out to meet Hatch. As 
soon as they came near each other she saw that he was 
pale and out of breath. 

"Charley, what is the matter?" she asked. 

He shouted, "The Indians are upon us." 

"It cannot be possible," incredulously said she. 

"But it is so!" said Hatch; "they have already killed 
Vought." 

All now came from the house and gathered around 
him while he related what he had seen. Then he asked 
for a horse to ride to the lower end of the lake and 
warn the other families. Mr. Rhodes let him have a 



i6 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



horse, but was so startled that he did not think of get- 
ting a bridle. Twice Hatch asked for one without 
avail. All stood dumb, stricken with fear. At last Mrs. 
Eastlick seemed, as she says, "to awake from a horrible 
dream ;" and with the realization of the situation and 
the need of rapid flight she rushed into the house and 
got the bridle, then bade Hatch in God's name to hurry. 

He commanded them to gather at Smith's cabin at 
the lower end of the lake. Then he rode on to spread 
the terrible alarm. 

Mr. Rhodes and Mr. and Mrs. Eastlick, with their 
five children, hastened towards Smith's cabin. Mrs. 
Eastlick was barefooted, and the youngest child, fifteen 
months old Johnny, was in his night dress. When they 
arrived at Smith's cabin they found it deserted and went 
on to Wright's. Here all the settlers were soon gath- 
ered. Even Mrs. Cook, driven from home at the muz- 
zle of her husband's gun, had made her way hither, 
wading along the bank of the lake and through the 
weeds in the hope of getting ahead of the Indians and 
warning her neighbors. 

With the settlers were "Old Pawn" and five other In- 
dians, who had arrived at the lake five or six days be- 
fore with their families. They pretended to be very 
friendly and offered to help the whites defend the cabin. 
The settlers, however, did not fully trust them and sent 
them to the stable. Then the women and children were 
put up stairs, holes for the rifles were made between 
the logs, the door and windows were barricaded, and 
evervthing was put into the best possible condition for 
defense. 



CHAPTER IV, 



THE BAPTIZING OF SLAUGHTER SLOUGH. 

The settlers had hardly completed their preparations 
when the Indians arrived from Smith's place. At the 
same time one of Pawn's Indians was seen to slip from 
the stable and steal to his brethren outside. After talk- 
ing with them a few minutes he went back again to the 
stable, trying all the time not to be seen from the cabin. 
Then old Pawn boldly went out to meet the coming 
Indians. When they saw him they stopped their ponies 
and talked with him for several minutes. Then Pawn 
returned to the house and told the white people that 
there were two hundred Indians outside and that they 
intended to burn the cabin with everybody in it. 

Having seen what they had, the settlers placed slight 
confidence in Pawn's words. They held a consultation 
and decided that, as they had but little food and no 
water, their chances to escape would be increased by 
leaving the house and taking to the prairie. Wise or 
foolish as this plan may have been, they proceeded 
without delay to put it into execution. Two of the 
young men were sent to Everett's place nearby for a 
wagon and a span of horses. The rest all left the cabin 
and fled across the prairie. 

In a short time the men with the wagon caught up 
with the crowd and loaded the women and children, 
who were then sent ahead while the men guarded the 
rear. For a mile or so the Indians kept at some dis- 
tance behind, satisfied with the belief that their prey 
was within easy reach. Then they began to ride faster 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



AND THE INDIANS. 



19 



and to get closer to the whites, who vainly tried to in- 
crease their pace. At length the pursuers were so close 
that the women and children deserted the wagon and 
hastened forward on foot. The men then walked at the 
head of the team, still loath to believe that the Indians 
really intended to kill them. But suddenly the Indian 
rifles were raised, and the fight began. 

The whites returned the fire, then abandoned the 
team and hurried after the women and children, loading 
and firing as they ran. 

Two of them, however, Smith and Rhodes, turned at 
the first volley and fled for their lives, leaving their 
relatives and friends to their fate. 

The remaining white men, seeing that they could not 
protect the women and children on the open prairie, led 
the party into the long, protecting weeds of a slough 
close at hand. In a short time the Indians had collected 
on the bank, and here, with odds of thirty to one, the 
six men attempted, in a hopeless struggle, to protect 
against their cruel foes all that remained to them of 
their happy homes ! 

Only a short time passed before the majority of the 
trapped settlers were wounded, and some were dying. 
It was impossible to fight, for each shot from the slough 
brought a dozen bullets to the spot where the flash was 
seen. After the firing from the slough had ceased for 
some time, Pawn called out that he wanted to see Mrs. 
Everett and Mrs. Wright. To this request Mr. Ever- 
ett made some reply, upon which Pawn called to him 
to come out. 

"I can't," said Everett, "I'm wounded so that I can- 
not walk.'' 

"You lie," said Pawn. "You can walk if you want 
to." 

Hardly had he said this when two rifles were fired 
towards the spot where Everett lay, and he was struck 



20 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



by a bullet and a buckshot, the former in his elbow, the 
latter in his foot. 

Upon hearing her husband's groans, Mrs. Everett 
arose, and, standing in sight of the entire savage horde, 
bitterly accused Pawn of treachery and ingratitude, tell- 
ing him that he had killed Mr. Everett, who had so often 
treated him kindly and fed him. 

Pawn replied that he wanted to see her and Mrs. 
Wright, and would not hurt them if they came out. 
After a few minutes' hesitation and debate, the two de- 
cided to comply with the Indian's request. 

As they arose to go, old Uncle Tommy Ireland, the 
patriarch of the band, stood up and begged Pawn, in 
the name of their past friendship, not to hurt the women 
and the children. Barely had he spoken when two In- 
dians fired at his breast and he fell, gasping, "My God, 
I am killed." 

When Mrs. Everett and Mrs. Wright came out of the 
slough, Pawn told them that a "big chief" wanted them 
for his wives, and that, if the women and children would 
be saved, they must all come out of the slough and sur- 
render themselves. 

The women returned to their friends and told them 
what Pawn had said. After a short discussion it was 
decided best to let the women and children go, trusting 
that thus at least some of them might be saved. 

After this decision came the heart-breaking separation. 
AYives and children had to say what would almost cer- 
tainlv prove the last words to the husband and father, 
lving like a hunted deer, wounded and bleeding in his 
last lair. The husband and father had to feel the ter- 
rible agony of seeing his dear ones go into the hands 
of the merciless savages, whose diabolical hands would 
surelv torment, outrage and murder some, possibly all, 
of the captives. 



AND THE INDIANS. 



21 



All the women and children who were able to do so, 
except Merton and Johnny Eastlick, went like sheep to 
the slaughter and gave themselves into the hands of 
the executioners. These two little fellows clung to their 
papa long after his blood had helped to baptize Slaughter 
Slough and the departure of his spirit had left them 
fatherless. 



CHAPTER V. 



HOW THE SIOUX KEPT THEIR PROMISES. 

Old Pawn had promised solemnly that none of the 
women or children should be hurt if they surrendered; 
but hardly had they delivered themselves into his hands 
before an old squaw came up behind Mrs. Eastlick and, 
grabbing her five-year-old son by the shoulder, beat him 
over the head with a club. He fell to the ground and 
lay in the grass for a moment. Then he sprang up and, 
with the blood streaming from his nose, mouth and, 
ears, ran towards his mother. But the fiendish old 
squaw caught him again and, before his horrified moth- 
er s eves, ripped his body open with a knife. As if this 
were not enough to turn a mother's blood to gall, an- 
other Indian brute, a moment later, shot her second son 
as he was walking by her side. 

Soon after this, as Mrs. Duly was walking with Mrs. 
Eastlick and trying to support her fainting body, the 
discharge of a gun was heard and Willie Duly fell at 
his mother's feet, shot through the side. Her wild rav- 
ings reached far and wide as she bent over the prostrate 
form; but her sorrow made no impression on the stony- 
Indian hearts. They seized her roughly and dragged 
her along, refusing even to let her know whether he 
lived or was dead. 

The next victim was Mrs. Ireland, or rather her girls; 
for theirs must have been the greater pain when they 
were compelled to leave their mother lying on the prairie 
with a bullet through her heart. 

Xear Mrs. Ireland lay Mrs. Smith, also killed by a. 



AND THE INDIANS. ^ 

bullet. Deserted by her husband and having no chil- 
dren, she was probably fortunate not to be k & ept a cap- 

The next victim was the third one taken from Mrs 
Easthck, her little boy Giles. Alone now, she had to 
Sie " ' eft ° th --d;in g oufc 

Th, 



ie savages were not satisfied without having- a 
after Giles Easthck's death until Mrs. Everett's little 

m™,tm P r W T n! Sheh ^ left her hLoand 
n the slough dymg, she supposed, and knew noth- 
ing of the fate of her baby and her daughter Lillie No 
wonder her mother love would not allow her to forsake 

startTb k t hl ! d ' ! lK t0re ^ fr ° m her ca P^ and 

heart hi ' ° ^ b ° y; but the Illdian ^ose 

heart had no sympathy for a mother's sorrow, stopped 

her with a bullet and left her near the child, for Zt 
of whom she gave her life 

vlZl glV n n M , S - C ° 0k a P ° n - V to lead > a "d Mrs. 
Eas lick was walking beside her, when he joined them 

1 er to wa/ "t ^ 3 """""^ ^-" commanded 

aroused S , f ^ Sl,S P idons at ™* 

aroused, she glanced searchmgly into his face, saying 

You aren t going to kill me, are you ?" 

"No," he grunted. ''Go on." 

She obeyed, expecting every second to be shot in the 
back ; but he arm , ed at of a t m ^ the 

safety and began to wade through the long grass She 
had gone about a rod when the Indian fired, fitting her 

eft H Sm f , b3Ck - THe bull6t Struck ol the 

eft side of the spine and came out on the right side of 
the body just above the hip. She sank down in the 

h'woTk T ^ I,KHan t0 C ° me and co «P>ete 

iZu A °T eVer ' Ae desire to live as ^rted 

itself, and, thinking that the Indians would pass over 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



her if she remained where she had fallen, she began to 
crawl away from the spot. As the pain of her wounds 
was excruciating, she had gone but a short distance 
when her strength gave out. Then she lay still with 
her face buried in the ground and listened for the step 
of her murderer. 

In a short time she heard someone following her trail 
through the grass. She tried in vain to clasp her hands 
over her thick, fair hair, then prayed that she might die 
at the touch of the cruel scalping knife. To her sur- 
prise the Indian who soon stood beside her made no 
attempt to procure the beautiful trophy of his atrocity. 
Could he mean to leave her as she was, thinking that 
she would surely die of her wounds? Alas, no! He 
stood for a moment silently looking at her prostrate 
form. Then a fiendish impulse moved his hand. He 
grasped his gun by the barrel, held it high over her head, 
then let it drop. A smothered groan escaped her lips 

.as her face was forced into the grass and mud; then 
her head bounded back, and again the savage hand 
forced down the gun. Xot twice only, but again and 

,again, the gun descended until a gasp from her lips and 
the convulsive tremor of her limbs made the fiend think 

;his victim dead. Then he left her in her agony. 



CHAPTER VL 

THE PARTY IN SLAUGHTER SLOUGH. 

Many strange things happened on this ill-fated day r 
and for some there is no reasonable explanation. After 
the women and children surrendered, the Indians made 
no attempt to capture, the men in the slough. They 
fired many shots towards the spot where they supposed 
the settlers to be, but they did not try to get their scalps. 
Perhaps they were anxious to join their brethren at 
some other doomed spot ; perhaps they valued their 
rascally lives too highly to risk them for a few scalps; 
or it may be that they preferred to torment the helpless 
women and children. Be that as it may, the five men 
and the two little boys were left in undisturbed pos- 
session of the swamp. 

As soon as this fact became apparent to them, they 
took counsel regarding the best course to follow. Then 
again one of their number exhibited a spirit that one 
does not expect of a man when his friends are in dan- 
ger. Mr. Duly, the only one unhurt, deliberately desert- 
ing his companions, sneaked out of the slough and 
started for Mankato. 

Of those still remaining, Uncle Tommy Ireland, as 
he was familiarly called, was so severely wounded that 
it seemed impossible for him to live, and he urged the 
others to leave him to his fate. This they did not like 
to do. But being too weak to carry him, they dressed 
his wounds and made him as comfortable as they could. 
Then leaving; him and the two Eastlick children, Hatch, 



26 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



Bentley and Everett undertook to make their way east- 
ward to the home of a German settler known as Dutch 
Charley. 

A drizzling rain made walking difficult, and their 
wounds made them weak. But, keeping on their weary 
way as fast as they could, they came in sight of a 
wagon in the afternoon. Bentley, who was but slightly 
wounded, w T as sent ahead to find out who was the owner 
of the wagon and to get permission, if possible, for 
Everett to ride, as he was fast becoming helpless. He 
followed as fast as he could, but a good part of the after- 
noon was gone when he caught up with the team and 
found the owner to be Mr. Meyers, who — having driven 
the Indians out of his corn and apprehending what 
would follow — had without delay loaded Mrs. Meyers 
upon the wagon and started for Xew Ulm. When Bent- 
ley overtook Meyers they were near Dutch Charley's 
place, and at his cabin, which they found deserted, they 
stopped for the night. They put Mrs. Meyers upon the 
bed, took care of the team, ate some of the privisions 
that Meyers had brought, then alternately slept and 
watched. 

Hatch and Everett slowly and painfully followed Bent- 
ley, and, arriving at Dutch Charley's place late at night, 
lay down on some hay in the stable. 

In the morning Hatch and Bentley, both suspicious 
of Indians, went, one to the door of the stable and the 
other to the door of the house, to survey their surround- 
ings. Each discovered the other, and each took the 
other for an Indian. Simultaneously they aimed and 
pulled the triggers ; but fortunately both guns had been 
rendered useless by the rain, and the friends were saved 
the sorrow which might have been the result of their 
mistake. 

When their guns had failed them they recognized each 
other, and in a moment were thankfully embracing each 



AND THE INDIANS. 



27 



other. They then carried Mr. Everett into the house, 
and, after caring for him and eating breakfast, put him 
and Mrs. Meyers upon the wagon and resumed their 
flight, arriving that evening at Little Creek. 

Uncle Tommy, left in the slough with the two little 
boys lamenting over their dead parent, began to revolve 
schemes in his mind for saving the children. As he 
began to feel better and stronger after a few hours, he 
persuaded Merton that he ought to take Johnny upon 
his back and come along towards Dutch Charley's place. 
Stifling his childish grief, Alerton tore Johnny away 
from his father's body, and, carrying him, accompanied 
Uncle Tommy out of the slough. Kind old Uncle 
Tommy ! He struggled hard to lead the boys to some 
place where they would be safe, but even love and reso- 
lution could not replace the strength which left him 
with his ebbing blood. They had gone only about half 
a mile when his weary legs refused to support his body 
and he sank fainting to the ground. 

Poor Merton looked sorrowfully in the old man's face 
and helplessly asked, "What can I do, Uncle?" 

"Nothing," he said, "my boy, except keep on and save 
little Johnny. If you go straight on towards those trees 
off in the distance, you will come to Buffalo Lake. 
Take the trail there and follow it until you find some- 
body to take care of you and Johnny. You must be a 
little man, you know, for Johnny's sake." 

"Yes, for Johnny's sake," thought the eleven-year-old 
s hero, and his heart expanded with a feeling of love and 
responsibility. He gathered some leaves and grass and 
put them under Tommy's head, then kissed him and 
tearfully started for the distant ' woods, again carrying 
Johnny on his back. Bravely he continued his weary 
tramp, stopping only when utter exhaustion compelled 
him to do so. He reached the timber just at dusk, and 
soon stood on the shore of the lake. 



28 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



By this time Johnny was worn out and cried for some- 
thing to eat. Merton carefully laid him on the ground 
and told him to sleep, as he could give him nothing to 
eat. Nature soon compelled the tired little child to obey 
his older brother, who placed his larger body over the 
baby's to keep off the rain. What a night of terror it 
must have been for the eleven-year-old boy! After 
darkness the hideous noise of the wolves came to his 
ears. At first they seemed far away; but after a while 
the shivering little sentinel could see their fiery eyes 
glittering behind the trees close by. He shouted and 
they scampered away. But they soon came back again ; 
and his little heart almost broke as the horrible thought 
took shape in his mind that they would like to eat him 
and his baby brother. Again he shouted, and again the 
cowards left. But at intervals through the night they 
returned and wickedly blinked at the watchful Merton, 
who at the first peep of dawn awakened his charge and 
went out into the trail. 

Tramp, tramp, tramp ! Then plod, plod, plod ! he 
kept on and on without a bite to eat till, about five 
o'clock, he saw a woman and two children sitting in 
the grass. At first he thought they were Indians, but 
soon recognized Mrs. Hurd and her two children. Put- 
ting forth all his remaining strength, he ran to her 
side. Mrs. Hurd, though startled by his sudden appear- 
ance, was delighted to see him and eagerly questioned 
him about the massacre and the flight — unable, how- 
ever, to repress the tears of pity as she looked at the 
emaciated form of the little hero. 

She, too, had had a terrible time. Driven from her 
home and out upon an unknown prairie, she had wan- 
dered about with her two children in her arms, not 
knowing where she was nor where she was going. At 
length, weary and worn out, she had come upon the 
trail and followed it, hoping it would lead her to friends 



AND THE INDIANS. 



29 



Her strength was so nearly gone that she had been com- 
pelled during the last few hours to leave one of the chil- 
dren at some spot while she carried the other ahead, 
then left it, and went back for the first, thus going three 
times over each mile. 

After resting awhile, the hungry fugitives went on 
together and reached Dutch Charley's place at dusk. 
Little thinking that they were not the first to take refuge 
in this cabin, Mrs. Hurd and Johnny eagerly hunted for 
something to eat. They found nothing except some old 
cheese so thickly covered with insects that it almost 
moved, but the hunger of all was so intense that they 
ravenously devoured cheese and insects together. 

Then, fearing that the Indians might visit the house, 
Mrs. Hurd and Merton took the children into the corn- 
field to spend the night. 



CHAPTER VIL 



THE DEAD ALIVE. 

When the Indian whose brutal gun had brought down 
Mrs. Eastlick and beaten her head, went away, he left 
her, as he thought, to die ; and surely he had every rea- 
son to think that she would soon pass to "the happy 
hunting grounds," after the cruel manner in which he 
had treated her. But Mrs. Eastlick was not dying, 
though she, too, thought her time on earth was drawing 
to a close. Her abundant hair had protected her head and 
saved her life. She remained for several hours where 
she lay, while the rain beat upon her bruised and bleed- 
ing body ; but at length the love and anxiety which rilled 
her heart induced her to lift herself into a sitting posture. 
The pain which her efforts caused was almost unbear- 
able : but still she tried, and at last stood up. Slowly 
and painfully she left the slough and commenced to hunt 
for her children. 

After a few minutes she heard a child's voice calling 
"Mamma." She thought it was her little Johnny's and 
turned in the direction from which it came. Hearing* 
it again, she recognized it as Willie Duly's, and stopped. 
She could do nothing for him, she thought; why in- 
crease his pain by letting him know of her presence? 
So she left the place ; and little Y\ idlie, crying for his 
mamma, cried himself into the sleep eternal. 

The cry of another child attracted Mrs. Eastlick's 
attention. Thinking that it might be Johnny's, she 
dragged herself towards the spot from which it came, 
and found on the edge of the slough Everett's six-year- 



AND THE INDIANS. 



3i 



old daughter Lillie with her baby brother. Lillie ran 
up to Mrs. Eastlick's side, as she saw her, and tearfully 
begged for water. 

Mrs. Eastlick's eyes were also overflowing as she said,. 
"My dear Lillie, I have no water and I cannot get any 
You'd better lie down and sleep." 

"Is there any water in heaven?" asked the little girl. 

"Lillie," she answered, "when you get to heaven you 
will never be thirsty again. I wish you and I were both 
there now." 

Then the little girl resignedly wiped the tears from her 
eyes and nestled down again beside her little brother. 

Mrs. Eastlick once more resumed her search for her 
own children and soon found among other dead the body 
of her little boy Giles. Not far away lay his brother 
Fred, breathing his last as his mother found him. Still 
this Rachel among her dead continued to roam over the 
neighboring prairie calling "Merton ! Merton !" until 
dawn reddened the East. Then she lay down in a 
thicket. 

About ten o'clock she heard the report of guns, and 
for several hours afterward every breath of wind bore to 
her ears the agonized cry of children undergoing tor- 
ment. Who can imagine the anguish that must have 
filled the mother's heart! There, that might have been 
her Johnny's voice ! And that — surely that was Mer- 
ton's ! She must go to save her children, and she almost 
leaves the thicket before she realizes the futility of it all ! 

About the middle of the afternoon she again heard the 
report of the guns, and after that the wail of the children 
was not raised again. 

At dusk she left her hiding place and looked over the 
surrounding country to find out where she was. Some 
miles away she saw timber that she supposed to be on 
the border of Buffalo Lake, and she labored all night to 



32 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



reach it. When morning came, she was on the edge 
of the woods ; and pressing her way through them, she 
made the startling discovery that she was back at Lake 
Shetek within a few rods of Uncle Tommy's cabin. 
Towards this she went as soon as she recovered from her 
disappointment, though before her lay a slough which 
she had to cross in order to reach it. She plunged into 
the water recklessly and waded to the other side; but, 
as the bank there was very steep and her strength almost 
gone,, she had a fearful experience before she succeeded 
in reaching solid ground. She fell back into the water 
a number of times and almost resigned herself to death ; 
but she could not give up, and at last drew herself out of 
the water and crawled into the midst of rich, growing 
corn stalks. With the nervous eagerness of hunger she 
tore off the first ear she could reach and began to eat it. 

At first it gave her empty stomach so much pain that 
she had to lie on the ground and moan with distress. 
After awhile, however, she felt better and went to the 
house, which she searched carefully, but without finding 
a crumb to eat. Fearing that the Indians might still be 
about, she hid in a plum thicket for the rest of the day. 
At night she went to the house again and caught a 
chicken. This she killed and voraciously tore the flesh 
from the bones. What was left she wrapped in a piece 
of paper, and with this and a few ears of corn for food 
and an old coat of Mr. Ireland's to wear, she started for 
the road about two miles away. It took all night to find 
it : then following it, she reached Buffalo Lake about 
eleven o'clock. 

While she was hidden in the bushes there she heard 
somebody coming, and, peeping out. discovered the mail 
carrier following his route from Xew Ulm to Sioux 
Falls. She hastened out to intercept him and reached 
the road just as he drove up in his sulky. He stopped. 



AND THE INDIANS. 



33 



and, taking her for a squaw, asked in Sioux what she 
wanted. She began to tell him in English about the 
massacre. 

"Why, who are you?" he asked. "Are you not a 
squaw ?" 

"No, no !" she replied ; "I am Mrs. Eastlick from Lake 
Shetek and am trying to get away from the Indians. 
They have murdered nearly all the Shetek settlers." 

In a few minutes the mail-carrier knew the whole 
story. He loaded Mrs. Eastlick upon his sulky, and, 
leading the horse, took her to Dutch Charley's house. 
There they found Uncle Tommy, who gave Mrs. Eastlick 
the welcome information that Merton and Johnny had 
made their escape. 

Uncle Tommy had spent two days and two nights on 
the prairie before succeeding in reaching Dutch Char- 
ley's place, and he was very ill and very weak. 

Having spent the night in the cabin, the three moved 
towards New Ulm on Sunday morning. Towards noon 
they overtook Mrs. Hurd and her two children, who told 
Mrs. Eastlick that Merton and Johnny were only a few 
rods ahead ; and it was only a few moments until Mrs. 
Eastlick embraced all that was left of her family. But 
even her eyes could hardly discover anything familiar 
in the forms before her, for Merton, who had carried 
Johnny almost fifty miles with nothing to eat but a lit- 
tle of Dutch Charley's cheese and some berries, was 
almost a skeleton ; and Johnny was so ill with the cholera 
that he did not know his mother, and his face was so 
disfigured by the bites of insects that there was no sem- 
blance to his real self. 

The whole party went on to a Mr. Brown's place, 
where the mail carrier left his proteges while he went on 
to New Ulm to send them a team and soldiers. On 
Wednesday he returned with the disheartening news that 
LofC. 



34 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



he had found New Ulm surrounded by Indians, who had 
shot at him and almost captured him. 

He took all the fugitives into a thicket near the house 
and told them to remain there while he went on to Sioux 
Falls for help. That was the last they saw of the gen- 
erous fellow. He reached Sioux Falls in safety only 
to learn that the Indians had been there, too, and killed 
most of the soldiers. After various adventures he later 
on reached Fort Clark, Iowa, in safety. 

The members of the lonely little party at the Brown 
place remained in the thicket only a night; then they 
decided to spend their time in the house and risk the 
coming of the Indians rather than expose the children to 
the torment of the insects. 

Nine days passed by. Then, as there was no sign of 
help from the mail carrier, Uncle Tommy, who was much 
improved, decided to go to Xew Ulm for help. He 
promised the women to be back by Tuesday noon. But 
Tuesday, an anxious day for the mothers, went by with- 
out Uncle Tommy's appearance. At night the women 
were afraid to sleep, and, in terror, watched while the 
children slept. Suddenly they heard the sound of a 
man's voice outside. One of the women looked out 
through the window and recognized Mr. Cook and Mr. 
Wright, two residents of Shetek, who had been to Lake 
Crystal working in the harvest field. They told the 
women that they had help, and a squad of soldiers ap- 
peared from the neighboring bushes. They took charge 
of the fugitives and carried them all safely to Xew Ulm, 
where Uncle Tommy, who had sent them, had already 
.arrived. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



THE MEYERS PARTY. 

Meyers, with the members of his party, left Little 
Creek the second day after the massacre at Shetek, and 
moved on to Leavenworth. All along the road the 
houses were deserted, and not a person was to be found. 

At evening they stopped at one of the houses and 
carried in Mrs. Meyers and Mr. Everett. As Hatch, 
soon after their arrival, saw some Indians in the woods 
not far away, they decided that it would be unwise to 
.stay in the house. They, therefore, carried Mrs. Meyers 
away from the house into a clump of trees, and all, ex- 
cept Everett, repaired to the same place. Everett, being 
unable to walk so far and unwilling to be carried, crawled 
into a buckwheat field near the house. He had barely 
lain down in his hiding place when three Indians ap- 
peared and sat down on the fence, so near that he could 
almost have touched them. He knew that if they dis- 
covered him they would complete the job of their ras- 
cally brethren. Not being anxious, therefore, to make 
their acquaintance, he remained as quiet as he could, 
'hoping that they would leave before his breathing be- 
trayed him. But they seemed in no hurry and sat there 
for fully three-quarters of an hour. Finally, however, 
they went away, without having suspected that there was 
a helpless pale-face within easy reach of their scalping 
Knives. 

In the morning the Meyers party again moved for- 
ward, and by ten o'clock they were where they could 
hear the booming of cannon towards New Ulm. It was 
the day of the massacre there. 



36 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



In the afternoon Meyers left his company in a ravine 
and started for New Ulm, promising to be hack by noon 
of the next day ; but if he did not return by that time, 
the rest were to move on to Mankato with the team. As 
he did not return by the time set, they moved on, ac- 
cording to agreement. 

The following night they spent on the prairie, and at 
daybreak again moved eastward. They were within 
eight or ten miles of Lake Crystal when they discovered 
some men on horseback approaching, and, supposing 
them to be Indians, quickly scattered and hid them- 
selves. The horsemen, Capt. Dane and a squad of 
soldiers, soon arrived and found Mrs. Meyers and Air. 
Everett, who then called the others and directed the 
soldiers where to hunt for them. In a short time they 
had found all but Hatch, who, firmly believing that they 
were Indians, would not leave his hiding place. Ever- 
ett, however, would not consent to go away without 
him, and he was found the next morning, happy indeed 
to meet the soldiers. 

Capt. Dane took the entire party to Mankato, where 
the wounded were placed in the hospital. Mrs. Meyers 
died there the clay after her arrival. Bentley and Hatch 
soon recovered ; but Everett's life long hung in the bal- 
ance, and February had come when he was finally able 
to hobble out of the hospital on crutches. 

Meyers reached Mankato soon after the rest of his 
party got there with the soldiers. 



CHAPTER IX. 



THE CAPTIVES. 

After crossing the slough in which Mrs. Eastlick was 
left to die, the Indians took their prisoners to the Cot- 
tonwood river, where they encamped for the night. The 
next day a part of them went back to Shetek to plunder 
and to gather the horses and cattle and bring them to 
camp. It was this party that must have tormented the 
children whose wail Mrs. Eastlick heard. When they 
returned to the camp they brought Lillie Everett as a 
captive. What became of her baby brother can only be 
conjectured. 

The Indians now had as prisoners the following from 
Shetek: Mrs. Wright, with two children; Mrs. Duly, 
with two children; Mrs. Cook, two of Ireland's girls, 
and Lillie Everett. They were taken from the Cotton- 
wood to the Yellow Medicine, where they were distrib- 
uted among the Indians and generally adopted as mem- 
bers of the tribe. 

Mrs. Cook, who had been given to White Lodge, an 
ugly, old chief, had some of the most unpleasant ex- 
periences. Quite often when White Lodge travelled, he 
wanted her to accompany him, and she sometimes was 
far from willing to obey. It consequently happened 
that one time, when he requested her to come with him, 
she refused to go. Without a moment's hesitation the 
old scamp raised his gun and aimed at her heart. She 
changed her mind quickly and went with him ; but she 
saw that, if she wanted to live long, she must do some- 
thing to gain her captor's respect. Accordingly, when 
he was not watching, she wetted the powder in his gun, 



38 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 



and, when he soon afterwards asked her to perform some 
menial service, flatly refused to obey. As before, he 
immediately grabbed for his gun and aimed at her 
breast. Without an instant's hesitation she exposed it 
and told him to shoot if he dared. He pulled the trigger, 
but there was no report. She had won. From that time 
on he treated with respect the white squaw whom the 
Great Spirit protected. 

About seven weeks after the massacre Gen. Sibley 
ransomed a number of prisoners from the Indians at the 
Yellow Medicine river. Among them were Mrs. Cook 
and Mrs. Wright's son. 

About the same time old Pawn started for the Mis- 
rouri river with the rest of the Shetek prisoners. Hav- 
ing carried them around for a number of days, he finally 
encamped on the bank of the Missouri, and here his 
Indians hunted and fished and idled. 

After they had been in this spot a week, Mrs. Wright 
was one day at the river bank for water when she saw 
two white men in a canoe. Her heart at once gave a 
joyful bound and thoughts of freedom filled her mind. 
She called to the men, who turned at the sound of her 
voice and slowly approached. To them she told her 
story and asked whether they could not rescue her and 
her companions. 

"How many of you are there?'' asked one of the men. 

".Eight," she replied. 

"Then I am afraid we can do nothing for you now," 
said the other man. "But we will report your case to the 
government officers, and undoubtedly they will help 
you." 

With these words they left her, and she went back to 
camp, wondering whether or not they would keep their 
promise. 

However, she might have spared her doubts. The 



AND THE INDIANS. 



39 



two hunters did as they promised, and the government 
officials undertook to rescue them. 

A friendly chief — Four Bear by name — was sent with 
seven companions to visit Pawn's camp and bring back 
the prisoners, peaceably or forcibly, as he thought best. 

So one day Pawn and his Indians had to collect in 
council to discuss the weighty matters which a newly- 
arrived chief said he had to lay before them. When they 
had smoked and grunted sufficiently, Four Bear tersely 
stated his business. 

"Four Bear is a friend of the pale-face," said one of 
Pawn's warriors. "He is not a brave." 

"Four Bear," replied the owner of the name, with dig- 
nity, "is a friend of the pale-face, and he does not be- 
lieve in making war upon women and children. He 
may not be a brave. Surely he is not a squaw." 

There was much discontent among Pawn's warriors, 
as they were not willing to part with their prisoners. 
But Four Bear plead so eloquently and threatened so 
direfully that Pawn at last asked what he would give as 
a ransom for the prisoners. A sum of money was 
named, but Pawn wanted more. They had just about 
decided on a thousand dollars, when Pawn wanted to 
know how he was to get the money. Fearing that he 
would not get it, he wanted to adjourn the council. 
Four Bear, however, would not give up ; and at length 
they agreed that Four Bear's Indians were to give their 
ponies and saddles for the prisoners— a pony and saddle 
for each. Then they smoked again and parted in peace, 
Pawn's party taking the ponies and Four Bear's taking 
the prisoners, whom they delivered at Fort Pierre on 
the twelfth of December. 

In course of time all the prisoners were sent from 
there to Fort Dodge, where Everett met Lillie, and 
Wright his wife and daughter. 



4 o 



THE SHETEK PIONEERS 




CHAPTER X. 



CONCLUSION. 

After the massacre most of the survivors settled down 
in various parts of Eastern Minnesota, where some of 
them are still living and can be consulted regarding this 
history. 

The bodies of those slain by the Indians rest in a small 
enclosure on the southeastern border of the lake. It is 
a beautiful spot. On one side the fields of waving grain 
speak of more quiet times that have come since the mar- 
tyrdom of those who occupy the hallowed plot. On the 
other sides majestic forest trees recall the day of the wild 
beast and the Indian, and empower one's imagination to 
picture more vividly the life of forty years ago. No 
monument marks the spot, and no epitaph tells the 
story. Some time, perhaps, kind hands will erect a me- 
mento and plant a few "Forget-me-nots ;" but may no 
one mar the appropriate glory which is at present shed 
upon the spot by the towers of verdure which rise 
above it. 

One cabin still remains, standing at Tepeeotah, whither 
it was brought from the southern part of the lake where 
it stood when Mr. Cook's blood marked the threshold. 
It has felt the hand of the modern carpenter and the 
touch of the white-wash brush ; but it is gratifying to 
know that its owners are trying to preserve it as an ob- 
ject lesson for the present and future generations— as an 
appeal for honor to the memory of the Shetek pioneers. 



MAY 28 1902 

1COPY DEL TO CAT. DtV. 
MAY 29 1902 



JUN. 3 1902 



